Wheeled action toy

ABSTRACT

A WHEELED PUSH TOY IS PROVIDED WITH MEANS FOR PROPELLING A SMALL OBJECT, SUCH AS AN ELONGATED SIMULATED FIGURE, UPWARDLY AS THE TOY IS PUSHED. THE OBJECT FREELY TRAVELS IN AN ELONGATED TUBULAR HOUSING AND IS KICKED   UPWARDLY THEREIN UPON RELEASE OF A SPRING ACTUATED PLUG OR PLATFORM AT THE LOWER END OF SAID TUBULAR HOUSING, THUS SIMULATING A FIGURE JUMPING ON A TRAMPOLENE.

March 16, 1971 J LEMELSON I 3,570,174

WHEELED ACTION TOY Filed Nov. 15, 1969 i a; 32 INVENTOR. l "l I JEROMEHLEMELSON United States Patent 3,570,174 WHEELED ACTION TOY Jerome H. Lemelson, 85 Rector St., Metuchen, NJ. 08840 Filed Nov. 13, 1969, Ser. No. 876,326 Int. Cl. A6311 11/06 US. Cl. 46205 4 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A wheeled push toy is provided with means for propelling a small object, such as an elongated simulated figure, upwardly as the toy is pushed. The object freely travels in an elongated tubular housing and is kicked upwardly therein upon release of a spring actuated plug or platform at the lower end of said tubular housing, thus simulating a figure jumping on a trampolene.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION This invention relates to a push toy having a particular action simulating a jumping figure, which action occurs automatically when the toy is pushed so as to attract the attention of the child playing with the toy.

It is a primary object of this invention to provide a new and improved wheeled toy containing means for generating an attention-getting action when the toy is pushed.

Another object is to provide a push toy which may be easily operated by small children and which simulates the effect of a figure or animal jumping.

Another object is to provide a wheeled toy with simple means for intermittently causing a simulated mock figure to jump upwardly from a platform and simple means for guiding said figure and preventing it from becoming upended.

With the above and such other objects in view as may hereinafter more fully appear, the invention consists of the novel construction, combination and arrangement of parts as will hereinafter be more fully described and illustrated in the accompanying drawings, but it is to be understood that changes, variations and modifications may be resorted to which fall within the scope of the invention as claimed.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is an isometric view of one form of a push toy made in accordance with the teachings of the instant invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view with parts sectioned for clarity of the push toy of 'FIG. 1, and

FIG. 3 is a side view of a modified form of the invention.

There is shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 details of a push wheeled toy having a base 11 including means for rotationally supporting an axle containing wheels 13 and 14 at the ends thereof fastened to said axle. A long handle 12 made of a plastic tube or wooden dowel is fastened in a hole in the side wall of the base 11 and may be employed to push the toy to make the wheels thereof rotate. The shaft 15 is provided with a U-shaped bend 16 therein near its center which serves to cock and release a mechanism denoted 18 to be described for propelling an object F in the shape of a figure toy, upwardly from the upper surface 17 on the base 11. As the toy is pushed the wheels rotate, rotating shaft 15 and causing the crank portion 16 of the shaft 15 to intermittently cock and release mechanism 18.

Disposed against the upper surface 17 of base 11 and projecting upwardly therefrom is a dome 19 preferably made of clear, rigid plastic material such as polystyrene,

3,570,174 Patented Mar. 16, 1971 methyl, methacrylate or rigid polyvinyl-chloride. The dome 19 contains a tubular portion 20 of substantially cylindrical shape and constant inside diameter and serves as a tubular guideway for the elongated object or figure P which has a diameter or cross-section which is less than the diameter of the inside of tubular portion 20 but not small enough to permit the upending of the figure within said tubular formation 20.

In other words, the breadth or diameter of the figure toy F disposed within the elongated volume 21 defined by the tubular portion 20 is such that said figure may be caused to travel up and down within said volume 21, more or less freely and without obstruction or friction serving to hinder or reduce the movement thereof. However, since it is always desired to have the figure in a standing or upright position with its feet resting on a platform 25 at the lower end of the volume 21, the diameter of the tubular portion 20 is such as to prevent the figure F from tumbling or upending. A preferable arrangement is one in which the figure F Will, when centrally disposed within the volume 21, have a clearance of between about A3" and A between its maximum peripheral surfaces and the surface of the tubular portion 20 so that, even if the push toy is canted, depending on how the child holds the handle 12, the figure F will be retained substantially in an upright position.

The outer dome portion 19 is shown having its peripheral rim 19 secured to a recessed portion 11' of the base 11. Assembly may be effected by means of fasteners and/ or adhesive disposed between the base 11 and the lower rim 19" of dome member 19. When the dome 19 is so located, the lower rim of the tubular portion 20 is in abutment with the upper surface 17 of the base 11, as shown, and an angular strip or bracket 27 may be disposed and secured to the lower end of the tubular portion 20 for securing same to the upper surface 17 of base 11 by adhesive or fastening means.

The mechanism 18 employed to cause the figure F to jump up and down within the volume 21 as the toy 10 is pushed, is disposed within a bore 11b provided between the center of the base 11. The platform 25 on which the figure F rests is connected to an actuator 22 which depends downwardly therefrom through a slotted opening 11c which extends from the bore 11b through the bottom surface 17' of the base 11. A coil spring 26 is disposed within the bore 11b and is compressed when the crank 16 engages one or two shelf-like projections 24 formed in an opening 23 extending through actuator member 22. In other words, as crank 16 turns, it bears downwardly on the upper surface of the inward projection 24 forcing the actuator 22 downwardly to compress coil spring 26 until said crank portion 16 of the shaft 15 overrides the projection 24 whereupon the actuator 22 is released and suddenly caused to travel upwardly as the coil spring 26 expands. The upward travel of actuator 22 is suddenly arrested after release so as to eject the figure F off the upper surface of the platform 25. If the spring 26 is of sufficient potential, it will cause the figure F to become propelled upwardly as illustrated in FIG. 1, thus simulating the effect that the figure is jumping or bouncing on a trampoline. By the time the crank 16 has been rotated to engage the projection 24 and compresses spring 26, the figure toy F has come to rest on the upper surface of the platform 25, as illustrated in 'FIG. 2, so that it may again be propelled upwardly thereafter, thus simulating a continued oscillating or jumping action. Of course, other mechanisms may be employed to cause the figure F to be propelled upwardly in the volume 21 and these may include a crank device operative to deflect a cantilevered leaf spring secured to the platform 25 or engaging the lower end of figure F directly.

In FIG. 3 is shown a modified form of the housing structures of FIGS. 1 and 2. The push toy 30 includes a base 31 of the type described having wheels, one of which 33 is shown and a handle 32. A figure toy F is disposed within an elongated clear plastic tube 34 having a rounded upper end 35 and defining an internal volume 36 for loosely retaining the figure toy therein. A second dome 33, larger in diameter than tubular member 24, is secured to the periphery of the base 31 and has an opening 33 in its top wall through which tubular member 34 extends. The tubular member 34 in dome 33 are preferably integrally molded as a single unit or adhesively secured together at the opening 33. The structure illustrated in FIG. 3 serves to substantially enhance the appearance of the toy and to provide supporting means for the tubular member 34 by detracting from the appearance of the toy or reducing the visibility of the child insofar as his ability to view the action of the figure as it is caused to move up and down within the toy. If the dome 33 is clear, the entire action may be viewed from any angle. However, if dome 33 is provided of an opaque plastic and dome 34 transparent plastic, then a surprise action will be attained in which the child will only be able to notice the figure or object F when it projects upwardly through that portion of the tubular member 34 which protrudes upwardly from the dome 33.

I claim:

1. A wheeled action toy comprising:

a base,

an axle rotatably supported on said base,

a plurality of wheels attached to said axle to cause rotation of the axle when said wheels rotate as the toy is moved across a surface,

a tubular housing made of transparent, self-supporting plastic, said tubular housing being closed at its upper end and having an opening at the lower end, said lower end being secured at said lower end to said base,

an elongated figure toy loosely disposed within said housing and being of shorter length than the passageway defined by said housing but shaped so as to always be retained upright in said housing,

spring-loaded impact producing means reciprocally supported by said base and located in alignment with said open end of said tubular housing,

means associated with said axle for biasing said impactproducing means to store potential energy therein and means operative when said axle reaches a predetermined point in its rotation to release said impact-producing means whereby said impact-producing means strikes said figure toy and causes it to be propelled upwardly through said tubular housing after which it falls by gravity to the bottom thereof to simulate the effect of the figure jumping up and down on said base.

2. A wheeled action toy in accordance with claim 1, whereby said impact-producing means is operative to propel said figure toy to substantially the height of said tubular member each time it operates.

3. A wheeled action toy in accordance with claim 2, whereby said impact-producing means is operative to propel said figure toy upwardly without striking the upper closed end of said tubular housing.

4. A wheeled action toy in accordance with claim 1, said impact-producing means including a piston, means for reciprocally supporting said piston on said base With said piston operative to move up and down within the volume confined by said base and said tubular member whereby the upper surface of said piston supports said figure toy when said toy is at the bottom of its stroke within said tubular member, a coil spring operative to upwardly bias said piston and means associated with said axle for downwardly urging said piston and compressing said spring as said axle is rotated, said urging means operative to suddenly release compression of said spring whereby said spring causes said piston to suddenly move upwardly propelling the figure toy on said piston upwardly through said tubular housing.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,835,074 5/1958 Crawford et al 46--205X 2,879,625 3/1959 Bolger 46204X 2,937,475 5/1960 Crawford 46-205 ANTONIO F. GUIDA, Primary Examiner R. F. CUTTING, Assistant Examiner 

